Case Study Description of Helio Polymer Enterprises
Helio Polymer Enterprises, located in Nakuru, Kenya, is a company that manufactures synthetic polymer gunny bags used in the transportation and handling of animal feed. The owner wants to expand her business operations so she can serve more clients. She has three options: to add a night shift, buy a new printing machine or start producing laminate gunny bags for other markets. Before she makes the decision, she must understand her current operational capacity and determine what aspects of customer service she believes are important for the long-term success of her company.
Swot Analysis of "Helio Polymer Enterprises" written by Nicole R.D. Haggerty, Juma Wagoki, Clarke Eaton, Wesley Hunt includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Polymer Gunny facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Helio Polymer Enterprises case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Growth strategy, Manufacturing and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Helio Polymer Enterprises casestudy better are - – there is backlash against globalization, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, wage bills are increasing, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing commodity prices,
customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, increasing transportation and logistics costs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Helio Polymer Enterprises
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Helio Polymer Enterprises case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Polymer Gunny, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Polymer Gunny operates in.
According to Harvard Business Review, 75% of the managers use SWOT analysis for various purposes such as – evaluating current scenario, strategic planning, new venture feasibility, personal growth goals, new market entry, Go To market strategies, portfolio management and strategic trade-off assessment, organizational restructuring, etc.
SWOT Objectives / Importance of SWOT Analysis and SWOT Matrix
SWOT analysis of Helio Polymer Enterprises can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Helio Polymer Enterprises case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Polymer Gunny
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Technology & Operations field.
4. Making a Technology & Operations topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Polymer Gunny
Strengths Helio Polymer Enterprises | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Polymer Gunny in Helio Polymer Enterprises Harvard Business Review case study are -
High brand equity
– Polymer Gunny has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Polymer Gunny to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Ability to lead change in Technology & Operations field
– Polymer Gunny is one of the leading players in its industry. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in its segment but also across the whole industry. The ability to lead change has enabled Polymer Gunny in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Polymer Gunny has built up over years in its products and services combo offer has resulted in high retention of customers, lower marketing costs, and greater ability of the firm to focus on its customers.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Polymer Gunny in the sector have low bargaining power. Helio Polymer Enterprises has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Polymer Gunny to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Diverse revenue streams
– Polymer Gunny is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Helio Polymer Enterprises case study a diverse revenue stream that has helped it to survive disruptions such as global pandemic in Covid-19, financial disruption of 2008, and supply chain disruption of 2021.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Technology & Operations industry
– Helio Polymer Enterprises firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Polymer Gunny to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Technology & Operations industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Polymer Gunny to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Learning organization
- Polymer Gunny is a learning organization. It has inculcated three key characters of learning organization in its processes and operations – exploration, creativity, and expansiveness. The work place at Polymer Gunny is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Helio Polymer Enterprises Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Helio Polymer Enterprises Harvard Business Review case study comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the industry, building diversified operations across different geographies so that disruption in one part of the world doesn’t impact the overall performance of the firm, and integrating the various business operations and processes through its digital transformation drive.
Strong track record of project management
– Polymer Gunny is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Polymer Gunny is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Helio Polymer Enterprises are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Innovation driven organization
– Polymer Gunny is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Helio Polymer Enterprises Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Polymer Gunny has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in, as mentioned in case study Helio Polymer Enterprises - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Weaknesses Helio Polymer Enterprises | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Helio Polymer Enterprises are -
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Helio Polymer Enterprises, is just above the industry average. Polymer Gunny needs to redesign the compensation structure and incentives to increase the revenue per employees. Some of the steps that it can take are – hiring more specialists on project basis, etc.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Polymer Gunny is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Helio Polymer Enterprises can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Polymer Gunny has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the industry using digital technology.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Polymer Gunny is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Technology & Operations segment. Polymer Gunny needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Polymer Gunny to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Helio Polymer Enterprises HBR case study mentions - Polymer Gunny takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the industry in last five years.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Polymer Gunny has some of the most successful products in the industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. firm in the HBR case study - Helio Polymer Enterprises should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Helio Polymer Enterprises that the firm needs to have more collaboration between its sales team and marketing team. Sales professionals in the industry have deep experience in developing customer relationships. Marketing department in the case Helio Polymer Enterprises can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Polymer Gunny is planning to shift buying processes online.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Helio Polymer Enterprises, in the dynamic environment Polymer Gunny has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Polymer Gunny has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Polymer Gunny has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Helio Polymer Enterprises HBR case study still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Polymer Gunny has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Polymer Gunny, firm in the HBR case study Helio Polymer Enterprises needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Opportunities Helio Polymer Enterprises | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities highlighted in the Harvard Business Review case study Helio Polymer Enterprises are -
Identify volunteer opportunities
– Covid-19 has impacted working population in two ways – it has led to people soul searching about their professional choices, resulting in mass resignation. Secondly it has encouraged people to do things that they are passionate about. This has opened opportunities for businesses to build volunteer oriented socially driven projects. Polymer Gunny can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Polymer Gunny in the consumer business. Now Polymer Gunny can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Developing new processes and practices
– Polymer Gunny can develop new processes and procedures in Technology & Operations industry using technology such as automation using artificial intelligence, real time transportation and products tracking, 3D modeling for concept development and new products pilot testing etc.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Polymer Gunny to expand its talent hiring zone. According to McKinsey Global Institute, 20% of the high end workforce in fields such as finance, information technology, can continously work from remote local post Covid-19. This presents a really great opportunity for Polymer Gunny to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Polymer Gunny to conduct training and development for its employees across the world. This will result in not only reducing the cost of training but also help employees in different part of the world to integrate with the headquarter work culture, ethos, and standards.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Polymer Gunny can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Technology & Operations industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Polymer Gunny can take advantage of these changes in consumer behavior to build a far more efficient business model. For example consumer regular ordering of products can reduce both last mile delivery costs and market penetration costs. Polymer Gunny can further use this consumer data to build better customer loyalty, provide better products and service collection, and improve the value proposition in inflationary times.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Polymer Gunny can leverage digital technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning to automate the production process, customer analytics to get better insights into consumer behavior, realtime digital dashboards to get better sales tracking, logistics and transportation, product tracking, etc.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Polymer Gunny is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Helio Polymer Enterprises case study suggests that firm can utilize new technology to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Polymer Gunny in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Technology & Operations segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Reconfiguring business model
– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help Polymer Gunny to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.
Buying journey improvements
– Polymer Gunny can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Helio Polymer Enterprises suggest that firm can provide automated chats to help consumers solve their own problems, provide online suggestions to get maximum out of the products and services, and help consumers to build a community where they can interact with each other to develop new features and uses.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Polymer Gunny has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Polymer Gunny to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Helio Polymer Enterprises case study. Polymer Gunny can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Threats Helio Polymer Enterprises External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Helio Polymer Enterprises are -
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Polymer Gunny with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Polymer Gunny in the Technology & Operations industry. The Technology & Operations industry is already at various protected from local competition in China, with the rise of trade war the protection levels may go up. This presents a clear threat of current business model in Chinese market.
Aging population
– As the populations of most advanced economies are aging, it will lead to high social security costs, higher savings among population, and lower demand for goods and services in the economy. The household savings in US, France, UK, Germany, and Japan are growing faster than predicted because of uncertainty caused by pandemic.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Polymer Gunny can face downward pressure on margins from increasing competition from international players. The international players have stable revenue in their home market and can use those resources to penetrate prominent markets illustrated in HBR case study Helio Polymer Enterprises .
Capital market disruption
– During the Covid-19, Dow Jones has touched record high. The valuations of a number of companies are way beyond their existing business model potential. This can lead to capital market correction which can put a number of suppliers, collaborators, value chain partners in great financial difficulty. It will directly impact the business of Polymer Gunny.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Technology & Operations field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Polymer Gunny can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Technology disruption because of hacks, piracy etc
– The colonial pipeline illustrated, how vulnerable modern organization are to international hackers, miscreants, and disruptors. The cyber security interruption, data leaks, etc can seriously jeopardize the future growth of the organization.
Backlash against dominant players
– US Congress and other legislative arms of the government are getting tough on big business especially technology companies. The digital arm of Polymer Gunny business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Environmental challenges
– Polymer Gunny needs to have a robust strategy against the disruptions arising from climate change and energy requirements. EU has identified it as key priority area and spending 30% of its 880 billion Euros European post Covid-19 recovery funds on green technology. Polymer Gunny can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Technology & Operations industry.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Polymer Gunny high dependence on third party suppliers can disrupt its processes and delivery mechanism. For example -the current troubles of car makers because of chip shortage is because the chip companies started producing chips for electronic companies rather than car manufacturers.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Polymer Gunny demand
– There is a high probability of declining consumer confidence, given – high inflammation rate, rise of gig economy, lower job stability, increasing cost of living, higher interest rates, and aging demography. All the factors contribute to people saving higher rate of their income, resulting in lower consumer demand in the industry and other sectors.
Increasing wage structure of Polymer Gunny
– Post Covid-19 there is a sharp increase in the wages especially in the jobs that require interaction with people. The increasing wages can put downward pressure on the margins of Polymer Gunny.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Polymer Gunny has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Polymer Gunny needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Technology & Operations sector. According to Mckinsey study top managers believe that the adoption of technology in operations, communications is 20-25 times faster than what they planned in the beginning of 2019.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Helio Polymer Enterprises Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers in the HBR case study Helio Polymer Enterprises needs to zero down on the relative importance of each factor mentioned in the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants.
We can provide the relative importance to each factor by assigning relative weights. Weighted SWOT analysis process is a three stage process –
First stage for doing weighted SWOT analysis of the case study Helio Polymer Enterprises is to rank the strengths and weaknesses of the organization. This will help you to assess the most important strengths and weaknesses of the firm and which one of the strengths and weaknesses mentioned in the initial lists are marginal and can be left out.
Second stage for conducting weighted SWOT analysis of the Harvard case study Helio Polymer Enterprises is to give probabilities to the external strategic factors thus better understanding the opportunities and threats arising out of macro environment changes and developments.
Third stage of constructing weighted SWOT analysis of Helio Polymer Enterprises is to provide strategic recommendations includes – joining likelihood of external strategic factors such as opportunities and threats to the internal strategic factors – strengths and weaknesses. You should start with external factors as they will provide the direction of the overall industry. Secondly by joining probabilities with internal strategic factors can help the company not only strategic fit but also the most probably strategic trade-off that Polymer Gunny needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
